Spotlight



May 8, 1923.

J. R.- SHIRREFFS I SPOTLIGHT FiledJune '7 1921 (like! m: 1

Patented May 8, 1923.

JAMES -12.-

sHinREFFs'; QF'LOS ANGELES; CALIFORNIAyT V ADMINISTRATOR oFsAID JAMES R. sHmnEFFs, DECEASED.

wins marter; Jiti,

SPOTLIGHT.

' Application filed J'une7, 1921. Serial No. 4755651.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES R. SHIRRErFs, a citizen of the United States and residing at Los Angeles. in the county of Los Angeles State of California, have invented a new and useful Spotlight, of which the following is a specification.

.This invent-ion relates to spotlights and -is particularly directed to an improved -an improved spotlight structure constructed to prevent the entrance of water between I the lens glass and the'reflector, and containing provisions tordraining water from the spotlight housing. Anotherobject is to provide means-constituting a conduit through which the spotlight cord extends into the housing and having provisions for draining'water from the in terior of the conduit.

Various other objects and advantages will be more fully apparent from the following description of the accompanying I drawings which form a part of this, disclosure, and which illustrate a preferred form of em bodi ment of the invention;

Of the drawings: Figure l is a front ele'vation-of'my improved spotlight."

Fig. 2 is a section on lineaz w ofFig 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged section on line w -fl7 of Fig.- 1.

Fig. i is a section on line w*:c of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is an enlarged section on line co -0& of Fig. 2. I

Fig. 6 is'a detail section on line m of Fig.

Fig. 7 is a partial section showing a modi fied form of drain.

Fig. 8 is a plan view of Fig. 7

The spotlight illustrated in the drawings has a housing comprising a bowl member 1, having a handle 2 and a rim member 3 havmg an mturned marginal flange l at its forward edge defining a lens glass openingand a-peripheral head 5 at its-rear edge. The rim member 3 "slidably engages'over the forward edge of" the bowl member '1, such engagement being limited by. a peripheral bead 6 formed on the member 1. Thetwo housing members'l and'3 are maintained in engagement by a split ring 7 which en gages over the bead '5 of the rim memb'er. 3 and the'bead 6 of the member-1, the opposite ends of the rings 7 being drawn together-by a screw 8 to tightly clampthe housing Inem hers together. is a ring 9 secured to the flange 4.- by soldermg or otherwise and having a beaded freeedge forming a channel 101 A lens; glassrll'v is positioned in the ring 9 and embeddedin" putty or cement as indicated at 12 so asztox form a water-tight joint. A reflector 13 carries a lamp socket 14 accommodating-a lamp globe 15 and peripheral edge of the reflector is flanged outwardly as at 16. The" reflector is positioned with its flangel6 ad- 79 v V acent the lens glass hand with a packing ring 17 of felt or other suitable material interposed between the flange and thetglass. The reflector 13 is retained in position by.

an expansible retaining-'member 18*whic'h engages in the channel 10 and is provided" with inwardly bent portions 19 engaging over the flange 16 of the reflector. Theretaining member '18 is preferably formedof spring-wire stockand has its opposed'ends i bent upwardly to form hand'holds' by which" it may be contracted for removal tromthe channel 10;

Extending laterally from one side'of-th'e' housing member 1 is a tubular member21- forming-a conduit to receive the spotlight": 'cord 22 and having a flange 23 secured to the housing-me1nber 1 preferably by electric spot welding, Fixed to the outer end of the member 21 is a hollowpivot stud 24t-whicha engages in a horizontal aperture in azverti cal pivot stud 25 the stud 25 being in turn pivotally supported in a spotlight supporting bracket 26. An adjusting: nut 27 "is:

screwthreaded on'the lower end of the stud 95,

25 and is itCljLlStGClitO 'frictionallymaintain the said stud in adjustedposition,- anda nut 28 is screw-threaded onthe outer end of the pivot stud 24 and is adjusted to, frictionally maintain the spotlight in its positionof ver tical tilt. The spotlight cord 22extends through the hollow pivot stud 24 and through the member 21 to the interior of the housing with the cord knotted as at"29" to prevent it from being withdrawn and to re? lieve the terminal connections of excessive" strain. One wire 30 of the cord'is connected directly to the'lamp socket 14: and'theothjer wire 31 being connected to one terminal of a push button switch 32 supported on the Positioned in" the'member 3 '6 housing member 1, the other terminal of said switch being connected by a short wire 33 with the lamp socket 14.

In practice it has been found that it is exceedingly difflcult to construct a two-part housing which will be absolutely water-tight and in housings of the push button switch type illustrated, it is practically impossible to construct and mount a switch which will be easily operable and at the same time exclude water from the housing. Further, in some instances the spotlight is mounted in an upside down position and in such instances the switch will then be positioned on the upper side of the housing. In this posi tion of the switch the rain can quite easily be forced past the push button of the switch and into the housing. As the presence of water in the spotlight housing is very detrimental, I have provided means for draining the housing and have also provided means for draining water from the conduit 21 through which the spotlight cord extends, both of such draining means being duplicated at the top and the bottom of the spotlight so as to effectively drain the housing in either the position illustrated in the drawings or in an upside down position.

As a means for draining the housing I provide drain openings or ports 35 formed in the top and the bottom portions of the' rim member 3 at the vertical center of the lamp, one pair of such ports functioning as drain ports with the lamp in the position shown and the other pair so function ing when the lamp is mounted in a reverse position. As one pair of the drain ports are always positioned at the top of the housing it becomes necessary that they be protected against the entrance of water falling .verticallv on the housing and again such ports must be protected against water forced laterally against the housing, as will be the case when a car carrying the spotlight is driven at high speed in a rain storm, and also when a car is being washed by the use of a hose.

First it will be noted that in stamping the ports 35 in the rim member 3 the edges are bent outwardly forming a peripheral flange around each port. This flange serves to deflect water away from the port especially such water as may be directed across the port at right angles to its axis.

Bridging over each pair of the drain ports 35 is a cover plate 36 which extends circumferentially of the housing with its opposite ends attached thereto. Side flanges 37 extend from the plate 36 to the surface of the member 3 and are of a length sufficient to extend slightly beyond the two ports. This structure forms a housing for theports, having openings 38 in eachof its side walls through which the water draining through the ports flows. It will be evident that with this construction, vertically falling water will be prevented from entering the ports 35 at the top of the spotlight, by the cover plate 36 and that water forced against the front or rear of the spotlight will strike against the flanges 37 and be deflected away from the ports. In case of water being forced at an angle through the openings 33 the flanged edges of the ports will serve to prevent the water entering directly in the ports.

In rare instances some minor amount of water may find its way into the ports and to prevent such water dropping onto the rear surface of the reflector l3 and flowing down to the lamp socket 14, I provide baffle plates 39 which have their side edges attached as by soldering, to the inner surface of the member 3 and to the outer surface of the ring 9 adjacent each of the pair of ports 35, and which extend circumferentially a distance considerably beyond the ports. These baflle plates will keep the water from splashing rearwardly over the bead'lO of the ring 9, said water then flowing circumferentially around on the outer surface of the ring 9 to the lamp and dropping into the lower pair of drain ports 35.

Of course, it will be understood that such water as may leak into the housing through the push switch or otherwise, will flow down the inner surface thereof and through the lower pair of ports 35 and then through the openings 38 in the cover housing or plate 36. I 1

To assure the member 3 being engaged on the member 1 with the ports aligned with the vertical center of the spotlight I provide a projection 40 formed by a pin fixed on the inner surface of the member 3 at its rear edge, which pin or projection engages with a notch 41 formed in the peripheral forward edge of the member 1. (See Figs. 3 and 6).

The means for draining the lamp cord conduit 21 comprises single ports 42 of the same form as the ports 35 and cover housings or plates 43 which are also of the same construction as the cover housings or plates 36 previously described. This provision for draining the conduit 21 is especially desirable for reason of the fact that in attaching the flange 23 thereof to the memher 1 by electric spot welding the resulting joint cannot be made water tight with a consequence that water will leak through such joint and into the conduit. The ports 42 and their cover plates 43 function in the same manner as does the previously described ports 35 and cover plates 36.

In Figs. 7 and 8, I have illustrated a modified form of drain opening or port. In this instance the wall of the/member 3 the portion 44 forward of the split extending outwardly beyond the portion rearwardly of the split, the split forming a drain opening 46.

From the above description it will be evident that the present invention provides a construction in which water is prevented from entering between the reflector and the lens glass, and in which any water entering the spotlight housing will immediately drain therefrom. Also does it provide means by which water entering the spotlight cord conduit will likewise be immediately drained.

While the form of structure illustrated and described herein is of the preferred form it is to be understood that the present invention contemplates such modifications and changes as come within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a device of the nature disclosed, a reversible lamp housing having opposed ports at its portion of greatest diameter and positioned coincident to the vertical axis of the housing whereby in either posltion of the housing one of the ports functions as a means for draining water from the interior of the housing, and cover plates spaced from and bridging over the respective ports.

2. In a device of the nature disclosed, a two part lamp housing comprising a bowl member and a rim member, the rim member having a drain port at its lowermost portion for draining water from the interior of the housing, intermeshing means on the bowl member and on the rim member cooperating to positively align the drain port with the vertical axis of the housing, and means detachably clamping the two housing members together.

3. In a device of the nature disclosed, a lamp housing comprising a bowl member and a rim member detachably united, the rim member having a lens opening, and a drain port at its lowermost portion, a lens glass carried by the rim member and closing said opening, a reflector spaced from the bowl member, means retaining the reflector against the lens glass, and intermeshing means associated. with the two housing members positively positioning the rim member on the bowl member to align the port with the vertical axis of the housing, the port functioning as a means for draining water from the space between the reflector wall and the housing.

4. In a device of the nature disclosed, a reversible lamp housing having a lens opening, and opposed ports at its portion of greatest diameter positioned coincident to the vertical axis of the housing whereby in either position of the housing one of the ports functions as a means for draining Water from the interior of the housing, a lens glass carried by the housing and closing the lens opening, a reflector, means retaining the reflector against the lens glass, and batfle plates adjacent the ports and functioning to prevent the ports from flowing onto the reflector.

5. In a device of the nature disclosed, a reversible lamp housing having oppositely disposed vertically aligned means for drawing water from the interior of the housing while in either position, a conduit communicating with th interior of the housing to receive a lamp cord extending into the housing and having opposed vertically aligned drain ports for draining water from the interior of the conduit.

6. In a device of the nature specified in claim 2, the housing having a laterally extending conduit to receive a lamp cord extending into the housing, said conduit having opposed drain ports positioned coincident to the vertical axis of the conduit whereby in either position of the housing one of said ports functions to drain water from the conduit, and coverv plates spaced trom'and bridging over the respective conduit ports.

7. In a device of the class disclosed, a lamp housing having a lens opening and having a drain port at its lowermost portion for draining water from the interior of the housing, a lens glass carried by the housing and closing the lens opening, a reflector, and means retaining the reflector against the lens glass.

8. In a device of the nature disclosed, a reversible lamp housing having a lens opening, and opposed ports at its portion of greatest diameter positioned coincident to the vertical axis of the housing whereby in either position of the housing one of the ports functions as a means for draining water from the interior of the housing, a lens glass carried by the housing and closing the lens opening, a reflector, and means retaining the reflector against the lens glass.

Signed at Los Angeles, California, this 1st day of June, 1921.

JADIES R. SHIRREFFS.

Witnesses:

CLARENCE B. FOSTER, L. BELLE WEAVER.

such water as may enter 

